Fodder/Sprouting Personal test

I'm getting an education, maybe need to use a little lime or gypsom..

What kind of spray heads do people use for watering?

What sprouts give you the best return for your time and investment- oats, wheat, barley?

I have been experimenting with this for about a month now and have sprouted wheat and oats. I can't find barley locally. The wheat seems to sprout overnight and grow with gusto. The oats just seem to sit there and barely have any signs of life after 5 days. Does anyone else have issues sprouting oats?

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I had NO luck with oats either. Wheat works great though. Barley isn't readily available here, so I haven't tried it, but that's what the commercial systems use.

Sherry

I have 3 does in milk right now, two in late lactation I'm hoping to milk through another season and the third who was bred about a month ago and will probably go dry in another month or so. I gave them the first sprouts of this try (not trial) and they ate them willingly. I think I'll ask for a sprouting set up for Christmas. This was just a small batch that I grew in a half gallon WM jar with a sprouting lid on it. I've fed the chickens sprouts with good results in years past.

I am certainly NOT seeing this sort of yield. What I am seeing (weighing) is seed:fodder of 1:2 1/2. Not spectacular but better than 1:1.

Are you allowing your sprouting green to get atleast 4" tall before you weigh it? Is the green real thick?

The green is about 4" tall and no, it's not real thick. I've just switched to using 2# grain per tray instead of 1# and all also switched to using something, like a cover, to help hold humidity in during day 2 of sprouting. We'll know in another 4-5 days if these changes affect yield or not.

That will make a difference.

Very interesting! I've just started soaking my second batch of wheat--which is very old, but should sprout, I hope. Decided to use my seed starting rack with lights, and some clear tray covers to see how it goes. Wonder what would happen if you mix in a little bird seed? Excited to be able to use my seed starting rack for something during the winter!

They would sprout. I do that--I also throw some sunflower seeds in with the wheat.

The only oats that will sprout are oats intended for growing. The other have been through a process to take off the outer shell.

Sunflower seeds sprout well, too. Still, I love the mix in the Forage Feast (and I have no connection to them).

Barley seed you have to get here (NC) in August. It's the only time it's available and apparently goes quickly.

I'll need to double check with my DD, because she's the one who's doing this. . . I thought she only used 1/3lb of seed per tray. Hers are thick, full and lush. I'll see if I can get a picture and accurate information. I wonder if its temperature? I noticed as I ran my hand over her lush tray it was warm. She has some heat from the lights above and below the trays, plus we're in NC. It's probably just warmer here in general, right? She feeds 4 full size does, one doeling, one big buck and 2 bucklings three trays. I think she does that twice a day. Really though, I'll have to pin her down for accurate details.

yes, please do! I'd love to get more info - learning from others is the best! and thank you

[QUOTE=BrightBay;6274057]The only oats that will sprout are oats intended for growing. The other have been through a process to take off the outer shell.

Bummer, so I can't go get a 50 lb bag of feed oats, bet seed oats are a lot more expensive?

The plotspike oats were $21something at TSC for 50lbs. My dd just weighed a tray. It turns in to roughly 5-6 times the weight of the seed. So, for $21 you would end up with 250 lbs of food. And I've asked her for the information this time, rather than going on my poor memory.

Cathleen, she said she uses 1/2lb per tray, and that too much actually hinders growth. She's using the standard 10 X 20 starting trays.

She says using a mild bleach solution to clean the trays between batches is important.

Also, 7 days ago she switched to trays without holes and just a dome and they've done better.

The process is:

Day 1 - 1lb of seed in a half gallon glass jar with a couple of inches of water over the seed. Our seeds did not do nearly as well when she tried this with city water. They did grow, but she thought it was about a 2 day delay in growth. They soak for 12 hours. She does this at night before going to bed.

Day 2 - In the morning she rinses the seeds. After rinsing she turns the jar upside down. It has a metal mesh screen on top. In the evening she rinses again and turns it upside down.

Day 3 - In the morning she rinses again and puts half in each of two trays with the dome on and puts them under the lights.

Days 4-6 She just keeps an eye on moisture. She says she allows it to cycle between wet and dry and just goes by the moisture that has collected on the dome. If it's kept too wet you'll get scum, if it's too dry, the roots shrivel.

Day 7 - She rinses the trays (2) and divides it up between 4 dry does, one doeling, one big buck, 2 bucklings and a miniature horse. That's only once a day. I thought she did it twice a day. They get hay for breakfast, sprouts for lunch and a cup of soaked beat pulp each for dinner. She said the goats do better if she breaks up the sprouts. Otherwise they want to fling it around to get smaller bites and lose a bunch.

thank you so very very much! Will give that a try starting tomorrow. Very different (though similar) to what I've been doing. Tell your daughter thank you from me, please?

I sprout oats & wheat for the poultry and grow that same combination into fodder for the sheep & rabbits. I soak the grain for 8 hours and then pour it into a drain bucket that has holes drilled in the bottom and sides. I use the sprouted grain to feed the chickens and to fill my trays to grow fodder. It takes about 4 days for the sprouts to be ready for the birds. Both trays & drain buckets get rinsed 2x daily. I do this in a basement that is kept at 70 degrees. Temperature and humidity have a lot to do with mold & odors. My fodder & sprouts are the nicest when I don't miss either watering. Missing one occasionally doesn't cause a problem, but only watering once/day for several days has caused my fodder to get that funky smell.
I did get a run of bad oats in March that sprouted sporadically, were slimy and quickly developed odors. I have no idea what the problem was. I now buy from a local farmer and the quality is consistent with good germination and no foreign matter.
I use cat litter trays from the dollar store. The fodder trays have holes drilled in them that rest in another litter pan without holes to catch the drips. By stacking them I can maximize space & not have to have so many drip trays. I don't know how to post a picture, so I'm posting a link to my fb timeline that has a picture. I hope others will share pictures of their systems, too. I could look at this kind of stuff all day
Fodder System
Good luck to all who are doing this. You can't beat it for cost & nutrition.
Diane

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I've increased the amount of wheat fodder to the milkers, leaving the other components of their ration (end of the pasture, mixed grain, hay, mineral salt and water) the same for now. I'm impressed with the increase in their milk production. Once I find more research about nutrients in the fodder, I'll tweak the grain to reduce it. I have as much hay as I want from our own place but the quality leaves much to be desired so this fodder is wonderful.

Starlighthill, I enjoyed looking at your website.